Herald Journal,
Dec. 22, 2003

Next steps for HLWW discussed at meeting

By Jody Anderson

An air of urgency and concern prevailed at the informal
special Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted School District school board meeting
Thursday.

Waverly resident Joe Campbell served as moderator at the
well-attended meeting, with a great deal of discussion taking place about
various subjects and the work of forming subcommittees to help steer the
direction of the district taking place.

The following is a breakdown of items discussed during
the meeting.

Subcommittees

School Board Member John Lideen gave a brief overview of
the previous meeting conducted several weeks ago, introducing a sign up
sheet for the following subcommittees:

1. Operating Levy Subcommittee: this group will address
funding, what is needed, what makes sense, curriculum revisions, and strategies
to educate the public about these issues.

2. Growth Project Committee: this group will focus on the
growth of residents and students in the area, and the impact this growth
will have.

3. Building Proposal Committee: this group will focus on
the proposal of new facilities.

He added that the subcommittees would be comprised of students,
teachers, and residents, that although hopefully there would be a board
member within each committee, they would not be in charge of the committee.

Supt. George Ladd emphasized the need to present a viable
project to the citizens of the area.

The levy

The meeting ensued with varied discussion as to the mechanics
of how to present the levy; some were convinced that the difference would
lie in breaking down different costs for the voters to contemplate, while
others worried that complicated ballots might confuse voters even more.

Further debate continued as to the merits of promoting
a mail-in vote in the spring versus a walk-in vote next November. No conclusions
were reached.

Dollars and cents

Ample discourse followed the topic of money. Some residents
were concerned that emphasis should be placed on individual impact on taxes,
versus an enormous lump sum of millions of dollars. Comparisons were made
with other communities in Wright County, some favorable, some unfavorable.

Waverly Mayor Charlie Bush suggested that tax projections
should include future growth, since new residences would share the tax burden,
although others wondered if more services would be needed, and therefore
annul the anticipated gain.

He also mentioned his dissatisfaction with the studies
done by Ehlers and Associates.

Board Member Al Doering concurred, adding that he had solicited
certain statistics in order to give more information to the public, but
was told it was too complicated a project.

It was concluded that the Growth Project Committee would
address these concerns also.

Curriculum

Curriculum Director Dean Wessman addressed the curriculum
issue.

"It's an issue of wants and needs versus cost and
space," he said. Wessman listed space, materials, and technology as
the most urgent agenda items.

"Some of those rooms are too small for the number
of students," he said.

Principal Michael Day informed the group that although
his staff and students are "doing their best" they are also "feeling
the pressure."

Alarm was expressed at the fact that the school does not
have enough algebra books for all of its students, and has had to make copies
of some books, since replacing the entire set is out of the question at
this point. 11th grader Jackie Koch attended the meeting in order to give
the students a voice.

" People are just worried about their taxes,"
she said, "They're not worried about the students; we deserve better.
"Parents expressed their concerns about grade point averages in large
classrooms also.

Timeline

Ladd noted the need to set a date for a vote on the operating
levy, but no conclusion was reached.

Three short-term solutions were presented as "options
that are being revised on a weekly basis."

1. Three portable classrooms built in the parking lot in
Howard Lake, with the need for three more the following year.

2. K-5 bussed to Winsted and Waverly elementary schools,
6-12 in the Howard Lake building; this would require approximately 12 portable
buildings at the elementary schools.

The portable buildings are leased for approximately $1,000
each per month. The consensus was that further discussion was required.

The subject of location, was postponed until the next meeting
due to time constrictions.

Superintendent Ladd was adamant: "Somehow we need
to get from 'it can't be done' to 'it can be done.'"

Doering added "Please invite someone you know to the
next meeting; not someone who agrees with you, someone who doesn't agree
with you. We need to hear their opinions, and they need to go back home
and tell folks the things we discussed."

Citizens interested in participating in the subcommittees
can contact Ladd at (320) 543-3521 or Lideen at (320) 543-3134 or needilj@hotmail.com.

Subcommittees should be formed by Jan 1, since they will
be meeting at the high school Tuesday Jan. 6 at 6:30 p.m.

The next informal school board meeting with subcommittees
and the public is Thursday Jan. 15, at 7 p.m. at the high school.